Improvement in coal-breakers



. BRADFORD.

Coal-Breakers.

Patented Oct. 21,1873

' the same.

UNITED STATES PATENT IIEZEKIAH BRADFORD, OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN COAL-BREAKERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 143,745, dated October21, 1873; application filed April 8, 1873.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HEZEKIAH BRADFORD of Readi11g,in the State ofPennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in Goal-Breakers, of whichthe following is a specification:

Goal has usually been broken between cylinders armed with spikes thatpenetrate the coal and reduce it to the required maximum size; but in sodoing there is considerable fine coal and dust produced in consequenceof the spikes acting so as to grind or pulverize the coal, and one lumpbeing forced against another, and the hard slate intermixed in layersand otherwise in the lumps, frequently break the teeth of the' rollers,unless it is previously separated by hand at great expense, and whenthat is too costly the coal is thrown away with the refuse on thewaste-bank at the colliery.

The object of this invention is to break the coal by concussion, andpass the lumps and small pieces out of the machine as soon as reduced tothe maximum size; thereby the grinding action is prevented, and coalthat otherwise would be reduced to dust is uninjured, and can beseparated from the small amount of dust that is formed and from thesmaller sizes of coal, while the slate, which is too hard to break bythe force or concussion that breaks the coal, will pass out at the endof the machine and be delivered separately. It may also be used forother purposes wherever applicable. ,I make use of a large cylinder ofcast-iron, perforated with numerous holes, of a size adapted to passpieces of coal of the intended size. This cylinder is made very rigid,and it is revolved upon supporting-rollers by gearing, so that saidcylinder does not require a shaft. The ends of the cylinder are open,and the coal is supplied from a chute with regularity, preferablyin therough lumps, as quarried; and as the cylinder is revolved the coal islifted by shelves, and allowed to fall upon the bottom, where it isshattered by the concussion, and the pieces that are small enough siftthrough the perforations, and only the pieces that are too large to passare carried up. In this manner the pieces of slate will be but littlebroken, but the coal will be broken off from In the inside of thecylinder there isa screw-flange that causes the material to progressfrom the supply end toward the delivery end, where the pieces of slate,stones, tools, logs, or other refuse matters are lifted by inclines inthe cylinder and delivered. This ribs upon their outer sides to stiffenand strengthen them. They are perforated with as many holes asconsistent with strength, and the holes are of a size to pass thedesired maximum size of coal. These staves are united at their ends tothe open conical ring-shaped heads I) b, and wrought-iron hoops 0 careemployed to clamp the staves together at suitable distances. Theinterior of the cylinder A is made with a spiral or screw flange, e,that serves to progress the coal from the supply to the delivery ends,and there are shelves g g at proper distances apart, runninglongitudinally of the cylinder, to lift the coal and drop it upon theinside of the cylinder, to shatter it by concussion. The coal does notfall upon the coal in the lower part of the cylinder, but upon the metalthereof, because the coal is constantly carried toward and upon therising side and shelf. The rollers t 15 upon the shafts h h serve tosupport the cylinder A as it is revolved by means of a pinion, 7o,acting upon the toothed ring I around said cylinder A. The liftingscrew-blade on, applied near the delivery end of the breaker, elevatesany slate or foreign matter too hard to break, and discharges the same.This screw-blade is a continuation of the screw-formed flange in thecylinder a, and lifts any foreign matter, so as to carry it out of theconical end of the cylinder. The cylinder is to be of a diameter adaptedto the desired use, so that the coal will fall from the proper height.The shelves are tobe of awidth and angle proportioned to the work to bedone and the speed of revolution, so that the coal may slide off theshelves at the proper point I cylinder of this screw may be perforatedto to fall upon the required portion of the inner side of the cylinder.Blades or teeth may project inwardly from the inner surface of thecylinder to serve for carrying up the coal, instead of using shelves.These blades or teeth may be of any desired shape. These should be setat such distances apart as only to carry up such pieces of coal asrequire breaking, leaving the smaller pieces to remain subject to thescreening operation; and sectional inclined blades may be used to movethe material along, instead of the continuous screw-flange; or thecylinder may be slightly inclined to effect the same object. Thefeeding-chute should so illclose the end of the cylinder as to catch andreturn any pieces that scatter as they break, and at the delivery end adisk may be applied within the end to effect the same object, therebeing the proper space left around the disk for the slate and foreignmatter to pass out. A

stopper may be applied at the delivery end to retain the contents, andallow them to roll aroimd in contact with each other as they accumulate,and thus break off any remaining pieces of coal, which fall back uponthe screen and pass out, together with the pieces of coal scattered inbreaking, and this accumulation is discharged periodically by removingthe stopper, which may be done automatically.

It is important that the coal shall be supplied with regularity, forwhich purpose a re volving feed ngscrew and cylinder (shown in myapplication for a patent dated March 21, 187 3, and allowed) may beemployed, and the act as a screen, and let off any pieces that do notrequire to be broken.

WVhere the coal is very wet, with much fine stuff mixed with it, andwhere it has to be broken very fine, as is frequently the case withbituminous coal, for the purpose of separating the sulphur, either orboth the feeder or breaker may be erected in a vat of water, similar tothat in my revolving washer patented November 8, 1870, to assist inscreening the coal as broken. In this case the cylinder should be in avat with the water a few inches deep in the bottom of the cylinder.

I claim as my invention- 1. The method of breaking coal by concussion ina revolving cylinder containing lifting shelves or blades andperforations for discharging the coal as broken, substantially as setforth.

' 2. Arevolving cylinder of perforated staves, bound together by hoops,and connected to open heads, in combination with the lifting shelves orblades, the supply-chute, and the deliverylifter m, substantially as setforth.

3. The screw-blade or sectional blades, in combination with therevolving perforated cylinder and lifting shelves or blades,substantially as set forth.

Signed by me this 3d day of April, A. D. 1873.

HEZEKIAH BRADFORD.

YVitnesses:

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, CHAS. H. SMITH.

